Linda Lingle was first elected governor in 2002, the first Republican to be elected during statehood.

Lingle was easily re-elected in 2006, defeating Democrat Randy Iwase, a low-profile state senator with 62.5 percent of the vote.

After serving on the Maui County Council for 10 years, Lingle was elected mayor of Maui County.

After two terms as mayor, she narrowly lost to incumbent Gov. Ben Cayetano in the 1998 governor's race.

She then served as chairwoman of the state GOP from 1999 to 2001, when she resigned to run for governor.

(Last updated by Herbert A. Sample on April 27, 2009.)

Daniel Kahikina Akaka was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1990 with 53 percent of the vote. He was re-elected with 72 percent of the vote in 1994, defeating Republican Maria M. Mustace.

In 2000, he defeated John Carroll, a lawyer and former Hawaii Republican Party chairman. Akaka won with 68 percent of the vote.

In 2006, he defeated Cynthia Thielen, a state representative appointed by the Republican Party to replace motivational speaker Jerry Coffee, who withdrew from the ticket due to ill health before winning the primary. Akaka took 61 percent of the vote that year.

Akaka lost a 1974 primary race for the lieutenant governor nomination after Gov. George Ariyoshi had selected him for the ticket.

He first was elected to the U.S. House in 1976, winning with just under 80 percent of the vote. He was re-elected to six consecutive terms with at least 82 percent of the vote each time.

(Last updated by David Briscoe on April 30, 2009.)

Daniel K. Inouye was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1962 with 69 percent of the vote, to become the first Japanese-American in Congress.

Inouye has easily been re-elected every six years since by large margins, often winning with more than 70 percent of the vote.

Most recently in 2004, Inouye held onto his seat with 76 percent of the vote against Republican Cam Cavasso.

Prior to his election to the Senate, Inouye was elected to the U.S. House as Hawaii's first member of Congress in 1960 with 74 percent of the vote.

(Last updated by David Briscoe on April 8, 2009.)